Des Moines Register
Beth Hoffman - Guest columnist
Not long ago, I saw an ad for a new product claiming to help farmers achieve peak yields and “beat their competitors.” But who exactly is the “competition” and why do we farmers need to beat anyone?
Since our nation’s founding, farmers have been told by those profiting from their labor that, instead of working together, we will survive only by competing with one another. That a neighbor with a bigger combine or better seeds will do better than you in the marketplace, we are told — you’d better swallow up their farm before they take yours...